Suddenly, Boston Looks Like It May Be Next Big U.S. Padel Hub

There’s a saying I used to hear a lot in my former job: “There are decades where nothing happens; and then there are weeks where decades happen.” And right now in the U.S. padel world, it seems as though every week is that week. Take Boston and its rapidly exploding padel scene, for example…

Of course, Beantown has always been a legendary sports city, thanks in large part to the success of pro teams like the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox and all-star athletes like David Ortiz, Bobby Orr, Larry Bird, and Tom Brady. What’s more, it has also been an incredibly important one in the history of racket sports.

In fact, Boston is one of the only cities in the entire world — along with the likes of Chicago, London, Manchester, Philadelphia, and New York — that is home to court tennis (no, not lawn tennis, court tennis)… rackets (no, not racquetball, rackets)… and squash, which are three games widely considered to have given rise to almost every other racket sport currently played around the globe, including lawn tennis and padel.

So, perhaps it’s only fitting that by early next year, the U.S. will go from having zero publicly accessible padel courts in the Northeast outside of New York and Connecticut (save for the seasonal outdoor court at the Brook Bound Inn in Vermont), to having three dedicated padel clubs offering as many as 15 total padel courts — both indoors and outdoors — within driving distance of Boston.

While we hope to put together full feature articles on all three of these clubs once they are up and running, here’s everything we know so far and a sneak peek of what you can expect once they’re all open…

Three Clubs About to Put Boston on the U.S. Padel Map

Sensa Padel Boston

As we previously reported, the sudden opening of Sensa Padel in Boston a few weeks back came as a bit of a surprise to those of us tracking Sensa Padel’s progress over the past year or so, since their stated focus cities hadn’t previously included — or even mentioned — Boston.

However, early indications on social media suggest that Sensa Boston, with its four indoor courts and 40-foot ceilings, has hit the ground running. The club, which is located within the Bosse Sports athletic complex, recently held its first open house weekend to rave reviews, with Sensa Boston saying on Instagram afterwards:

“What a weekend! A massive thank you to everyone who brought such good energy to our first Sensa Padel Open House. It was incredible to see first timers who jumped right in and seasoned players finally getting to play on courts in Boston. Overwhelmed by the love and messages of support flowing in — grateful to everyone who came out for opening weekend in Boston!”

You can visit Sensa Padel Boston between 7am and 11pm daily at 1 Westinghouse Plaza, Boston, MA 02136. For more information visit their dedicated MATCHi site and court booking page or drop them an email.

Padel Boston

Just about a 10-minute drive southwest of Sensa Padel, Dedham, MA, will soon be home of Padel Boston, which is set to feature three indoor courts, 25-foot+ ceilings, a cafe, showers, comfortable seating areas, a stretching/warm-up area, and a warm-up hitting wall.

In a recent conversation, Padel Boston’s founder, Chase Woodsum, tells me, “I am a local Bostonian. Originally a competitive golfer but have enjoyed all the racquet sports and have really loved playing platform/paddle tennis the past few years. Got introduced to padel a year and a half ago through a friend at an event at Padel Haus and was instantly hooked and I thought it would be a big hit in the Boston area which ultimately led me to leaving my job in finance to start Padel Boston.”

Woodsum further tells me this is just one of several padel clubs he plans to open around the greater Boston area and that he hopes the original Dedham location will be open by September.

Once open, you can visit Padel Boston at 220 Rustcraft Rd, Dedham, MA, 02026. In the meantime, you can follow their progress on Instagram or email them here.

Open Play Pickleball and Padel Club

If all goes according to plan, by early next year, Hopkinton, MA, will see a major “racket sports 2.0” facility open in the form of Open Play Pickleball and Padel Club, which will feature eight padel courts (two indoor and six outdoor).

And similar to clubs like Padel + Pickle in St. Louis and Sports Haus in Norwalk, CT, Open Play will also feature a major pickleball component with 11 total courts (eight indoor and three outdoor).

According to an article in local paper HopNews back in February, 23 years ago Open Play founder Yev Galper, who is originally from Belarus, “told his wife that he wanted to become a tennis coach when he retired. Now at 46 years old, Galper is fulfilling a variation of that dream by opening a new pickleball and padel club in Hopkinton.”

Galper further told HopNews that he learned to play padel from his brother, who is a table tennis pro in Denmark. Of the sport Galper says, “I loved padel right away. It’s simple in that I could play without any prior knowledge, but complex in the use of walls and movement and the physics of it all. I started looking into the sport and realizing how massive it’s become in the last few years around the world.”

He adds, “there are already a lot of people who know the sport [in the greater Boston area], they just don’t have access to the courts.”

Until now, that is!

Once open, you can visit Open Play Pickleball and Padel Club at 130 E Main st, Hopkinton MA 01748. In the meantime, you can follow their progress on Instagram or email them here.